It’s common for your appetite to change during chemotherapy. Sometimes you may not feel hungry or you may prefer different types of food. The drugs may also temporarily change how food tastes.
Learn more about:
- Nausea
- Changes to appetite
- Dehydration
- Video: How to eat well after a cancer diagnosis
- Podcast: Appetite Loss and Nausea
Nausea
Chemotherapy can make you feel sick (nauseated) or make you vomit. Not everyone feels sick during or after chemotherapy, but if nausea affects you, it usually starts a few days after your first treatment.
Nausea may last a short time or for many hours and you may also vomit or retch (when you feel the need to vomit but can’t). Sometimes nausea lasts for days after treatment.
Often the best way to manage nausea is to prevent it from starting, so you’ll usually be given anti-nausea (antiemetic) medicine before, during and after your chemotherapy sessions. Anti-nausea medicine helps most people, but finding the right one can take time.
If nausea or vomiting continues after using the prescribed medicine, let your nurse, doctor or pharmacist know early so that another medicine can be tried. Steroids may also be used to manage nausea and improve appetite.
How to manage nausea
- Have a light, bland meal before your treatment (e.g. soup with dry biscuits).
- Sip water or other fluids throughout the day so that you don’t get dehydrated. Sucking on ice cubes or iceblocks, or eating jelly can also increase your fluid intake. If water tastes unpleasant, flavour it with ginger cordial, syrup or fruit juice, or drink milk-based beverages.
- If your stomach is upset, try drinking fizzy drinks such as soda water or dry ginger ale.
- If you wake up feeling sick, eat something small rather than skipping a meal.
- If you cannot keep fluids down, contact your doctor or hospital immediately. They may be able to treat the vomiting, or you may need to have fluids through an intravenous drip in hospital.
For more, see Nutrition for People Living with Cancer
Changes to appetite
Appetite changes, nausea or vomiting may lead to weight loss. Losing weight during chemotherapy can make some side effects worse or cause delays to your treatment.
A dietitian can help you choose the best foods to minimise weight loss.
How to manage appetite changes
- Eat what you feel like, when you feel like it, but avoid going for long periods without eating.
- Try eating small snacks throughout the day rather than large meals.
- Avoid strong odours and cooking smells that may put you off eating. It might help to prepare meals ahead and freeze them for days you don’t feel like cooking.
- If the taste of certain foods has changed, don’t force yourself to eat them.
- If you don’t feel like eating solid foods, have drinks enriched with powdered milk, yoghurt or honey. Or try soup or scrambled eggs.
- Don’t use nutritional supplements, vitamins or medicines without your doctor’s advice, as some products could affect how chemotherapy works.
- Ask a dietitian for advice on the best foods or nutritional supplements to have during treatment and recovery.
Listen to our podcast on Appetite Loss and Nausea.
Dehydration
Being unable to keep liquids down because of vomiting can make you dehydrated. Signs of dehydration include a dry mouth and skin, dark urine (wee), dizziness and confusion.
It is not safe to be left alone if you are vomiting a lot, as the confusion may make it difficult to realise you have become seriously dehydrated. If you think you may be dehydrated, contact your doctor.
Learn more about nutrition and cancer.
→ READ MORE: Constipation or diarrhoea
Video: How to eat well after a cancer diagnosis
Podcast: Appetite Loss and Nausea
Listen to more episodes from our podcast for people affected by cancer
Download Easy Read and resources in other languages
Key resource
Download a PDF booklet on this topic.
Prof Desmond Yip, Senior Staff Specialist, Department of Medical Oncology, The Canberra Hospital, ANU School of Medicine and Psychology, ANU College of Health & Medicine, The Australian National University, ACT; Gillian Blanchard, Nurse Practitioner, Calvary Mater, Newcastle, NSW; Ken Colbert, Consumer; Laura Collins, Clinical Dietitian, GenesisCare, WA; Karen Gray, Consumer; Kate Lucking, 13 11 20 Consultant, Cancer Council SA; Louise Moodie, Director of Dietetics, Mackay Hospital and Health Service, QLD; Dr Shivanshan Pathmanathan, Medical Oncologist, Townsville Cancer Centre, Townsville University Hospital, QLD; Dr Marissa Ryan, Acting Consultant Pharmacist (Cancer), Princess Alexandra Hospital, Woolloongabba, QLD; Jayne Watson, Clinic Nurse Consultant, Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, Melbourne, VIC; Stephanie Webster, Consumer.
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